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2005 |
2006 |
Benefits Outweigh Inconvenience
Some people have driven by Millbrook High School and wondered, how is
it possible to run a school with that level of construction going on?
Very well, thank you. No doubt our students and staff have been inconvenienced,
and continue to be, but when needs overshadow that inconvenience we become
tolerant and flexible. Gone are the days of swing space for high schools,
the newly built empty school borrowed for a year while a school renovation
is underway. Though that model was enjoyed by Sanderson High (at Wakefield)
and Athens Drive High School (at Middle Creek), I believe those days are
gone. Newly built schools are desperately needed by thousands of new students
enrolling in our schools every year.
Last December six mobile pods (or modular complexes) consisting of 44
classrooms were assembled on our practice field at the back of our school.
As a faculty we discussed the move in depth. Were we nervous, was the
move anxiety producing? Yes, up until the moment we occupied our new spaces.
I am still amazed by what I heard our veteran staff say about the relocation.
One teacher was very emotional because she was leaving the only classroom
she had ever known. She had taught for 18 years in a trailer that was
brought onto campus 25 years earlier as a temporary classroom. We had
12 of them. Those trailers were in such bad shape, most had to be demolished.
They could not be relocated. After the move, the teacher acknowledged
that her new classroom and building (pod) were a significant improvement
from the dark, isolated, leaky trailer she had grown accustomed to. After
just one school day teachers determined the pods to be a success, a huge
upgrade from the building or trailer recently vacated.
Throughout second semester we watched as a fence was erected around our
school, and while we attended classes on the perimeter, our school was
torn down. This last summer we could begin to get excited as evidence
of the new three-story facility became visible. This time next year we
will be enjoying our new building, classrooms and auditorium. The pride
we feel for this long overdue improvement is the topic of conversation
in almost any group on campus. We can’t wait. As we watched Sanderson
renovate, and Wakefield and Leesville open, it was obvious that Millbrook
had better improve to attract and keep Wake County students who have many
choices as to where they attend high school. The Wake County school system
will no doubt replicate this renovation design in the future as student
enrollment continues to soar. The benefits far outweigh the inconvenience.
